Working It Out
by Kate Anderson
Summary: *Chapter Three up!* Can Ty and Alex give it another shot?
1. Chapter One

Title: Working It Out  
  
Author: Kate Anderson  
  
Email: sam_loves_jack@yahoo.ca  
  
Disclaimer: The characters used in this story aren't mine. They belong to Ed Bernero and bunch of other people that I don't know. Please don't sue - or else I will sic my rat on you! Go get 'em Maisy!  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Spoilers: Up through Season four's "Firestarter"  
  
Summary: Can Ty and Alex give it another shot?  
  
Author's Notes: I've been writing TW fanfic for a couple months now, but this is my first try at something that isn't Bosco/Faith!   
  
I'm a little unsure of writing these other characters - so forgive me if this stinks. Any and all feedback is eagerly welcomed!   
  
  
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Ty straightened his jacket and waited impatiently by the car for Chief Hancock. He looked down and scuffed his shoes around on the ground for a while, not caring that the shiny blackness was now marred with dirt. If Hancock noticed, Ty wouldn't care. He couldn't always be perfect. 

Hancock was talking with some other members of the police brass on a street corner. Ty was standing on the other side of the road so he couldn't hear the conversation but he could see them wildly waving their arms about. They were having quite an animated conversation. 

"Hey Ty." 

Ty looked up at the sound of a familiar voice. He saw Alex standing a few feet away, clutching a few bags in her hands. 

"Hey." Ty replied, not quite sure what else to say. 

"I heard you got a new assignment." Alex said. "Spiffy clothes part of the job?" 

Ty tugged on his dress jacket. "Yeah, gotta look good when you're escorting a police chief around town. How are you doing?" 

Alex sort of nodded. "Can't complain. It's good to be out of that hospital. Thanks for the flowers you sent by the way, that was sweet." 

"Yeah, sorry I couldn't stop by. With what happened with Sully and then this assignment..." Ty's voice trailed off. 

"Kim told me what happened to Sully's wife. That's terrible! How's he taking it?" 

"He's been staying with Carlos and I. He spends most of his days sleeping and drinking. He's supposed to be going to counselling, but I think he's skipping out on the sessions." 

Alex turned her head and looked at the group of men across the street. "Which one is yours?" she asked with a slight nod of her head. 

"That one, on the right." Ty replied. 

"He looks...friendly." 

Ty chuckled. "That's one word that I would never use to describe him. So, are you back at work yet?" 

"Tomorrow will be my first day back. I'm going to be working with Kim again." Alex looked a little unsure as she said that. "I just needed to relax today, so I decided to try going shopping." 

Ty scuffed his shoes in the dirt a few more times. "We should have coffee sometime." he said, looking at Alex. "You know, catch up on old times. I feel like I hardly ever see you anymore." 

"That's probably because you never do." Alex replied. Her palms were starting to feel sweaty so she shifted her bags around a bit. 

The group of police brass across the street looked as though they were almost through with their conversation. "So, coffee sometime?" Ty asked again. 

"Yeah sure." Alex said quickly. She glanced across the street and saw the older gentlemen that Ty had pointed as being his heading towards them. "I should get going. I'll um, give you a call, okay?" 

Ty nodded and watched as Alex took off down the street. Chief Hancock approached Ty and gave him a disapproving look. "That your girlfriend Davis?" he asked. 

"No, just a friend." Ty replied and opened the door for Hancock. 

_______________ 

"And he invited you out for coffee?" Kim threw her bags into the back of the ambulance and gave her friend a look as she slammed the doors shut. 

"Yeah, said he wanted to catch up." 

Kim laughed. "Sounds like he wants to do more than just catch up Alex! You gonna go for it?" 

"I told him that I'd call him." 

Kim glanced across the street at the police station. "He's a sweet guy Alex, you could do worse. Why did you two ever break up in the first place?" 

"Because he dropped my hand when his mother walked into the room! Do you how embarrassing that was? He didn't even want his own mother to know that we were involved." 

Kim frowned. "Right, I remember you telling me about that now. You wanna drive?" 

"No, you can drive." Alex opened the door to the passenger's side and hopped into the seat. "I just don't know if I can get back together with the guy after he did that." 

Kim shot Alex another look. "Come on Alex, it's not like he slept with another woman or anything. So, he's still a bit insecure when it comes to his mom, does that really matter?" 

"It matters to me." Alex replied. "But I'll still call him. Maybe he isn't even interested in getting back together. Maybe he's just looking for a friend right now." 

Kim pulled the ambulance out onto the road. "What's the address for that call again?" Alex told her the address and then Kim said, "He's been through a lot lately, with Sully. I guess you could be right." 

"Exactly." Alex said and then turned her head to gaze out the window. 

______________ 

Ty sat facing Sully at the kitchen table. Sully rubbed his face, which was covered with stubble and yawned. "You slept all day, how could you still be tired?" Ty asked. 

Sully shrugged but didn't say anything. Ty frowned, he was hoping to get Sully to talk. He decided to try something else, a different topic. "So, I ran into Alex yesterday." 

"Taylor?" Sully finally said something. 

Ty nodded. "The one and the only." 

"How's she doing? She back at work yet?" At least Sully seemed a bit concerned about Alex. 

"Today's supposed to be her first day back. She's riding in the bus with Kim again. I don't know if that's permanent or just until she feels up to running into burning buildings again." 

Sully stood up and wandered over to the fridge. He threw the door opened and looked inside. "We're out of beer." he said. 

"Carlos finished it off last night." Ty replied. "I haven't had a chance to pick up more yet." 

"I hate that kid." Sully grumbled and headed out to the living room where he lay back down on the sofa bed. 

"Don't you even want to know how it went with Alex?" Ty called out. He stood up and followed Sully. 

"Did she throw you up against a wall, kiss you passionately and beg for forgiveness?" 

"Not quite. I invited her for coffee, she said she'd call me. Probably wanted to talk it over with Kim first or something, knowing women." 

"Good for you." Sully replied, burying his head in a pillow. 

"I gotta go to work now." Ty said, looking at the clock on the VCR. "You need me to pick you up anything Sul?" 

"More beer would be good." Sully pulled the blanket up over himself. "If you see Carlos, tell him not to make so much noise when he comes home tonight." 

"Will do." Ty sighed and went into the bathroom to shave and get himself ready for work.   
  



	2. Chapter Two

Title: Working It Out: Chapter Two  
  
Author: Kate Anderson  
  
Email: sam_loves_jack@yahoo.ca  
  
Disclaimer: The characters used in this story aren't mine. They belong to Ed Bernero and bunch of other people that I don't know. Please don't sue - or else I will sic my rat on you! Go get 'em Maisy!  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Spoilers: Up through Season four's "Firestarter"  
  
Summary: Can Ty and Alex give it another shot?  
  
Author's Notes: Well, writing these other characters is certainly an interesting experience! Not sure where this one is heading, but I know it will be Alex/Ty. I just write whatever comes to mind first :-)   
  
Hope everyone is enjoying this!   
  
  
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Alex finished scrubbing the floor of the ambulance and tossed the sponge out the backdoors. "That's it! I'm done. That's as clean as we're gonna get it!" 

Kim picked up the sponge and put it into a bag. She poked her head into the back and looked at Alex who was sitting on her haunches. "Looks pretty good to me." Kim replied. "If the next shift doesn't like it, they can kiss my ass." 

Alex hopped out onto the ground and winced as she straightened her legs out. She tore off her gloves and put them into the same bag as Kim as put the sponge. "Feels good to be back at work." she said, looking up at the night sky. 

Kim smiled. "It's nice to have you back. All that testosterone floating about in the house was starting to smother me." 

"You know you like it." Alex teased her friend. Kim and Alex went into the firehouse to drop their gear off. 

"Taylor! Missed you before your shift, it's good to see you again!" 

Alex looked up and grinned at Walsh who was smiling wolfishly at her. "Good to see you too Walsh." 

"When are you gonna be back out with us? Someone's gotta be out there to keep Doherty in check." he asked. 

"Back with you?" Kim asked, putting her hands on her hips. "She's stayin' with me for a while!" 

"Guys, guys," Alex said with a laugh. "Calm down. There's plenty of me to go around! Kim's right though, I'm working with her for a while." 

Kim smiled smugly at Walsh and tapped Alex's shoulder. "I'm going to change." she said and headed up the stairs to the bunks. 

"So Jimmy's really been hard to handle?" Alex asked. 

Walsh nodded. "He's been taking too many risks, as usual. He was really freaked out after your, um, accident." 

Alex nodded. "He came by to see me a few times, but then he stopped. I figured he was busy with Joey. Is he around? I should talk to him." 

Walsh shook his head. "He left early today. Got a call from his babysitter about Joey and left." 

Alex frowned. "Does Kim know about that?" 

"Nope, and I think Jimmy would appreciate it if you didn't tell her. He said something about not wanting to worry her." 

"Oh, okay. Well, I'd better get changed and then take off." Alex took the stethoscope from around her neck off and fiddled with it. "It's good to see you again." 

"You'll have to cook for us soon Taylor." Walsh said. "Take over for Nieto. That kid is terrible!" 

"Terrible at what?" Carlos and Doc had just gotten off their shift and had walked into the station. 

"Cookin'!" Walsh said. Alex laughed and headed up the stairs to the bunks. 

"Oh just great, you and Kim are probably both changin' up there!" Carlos yelled up the stairs to Alex. "You two take forever. It's all gab gab gab. As if you can't talk enough in the bus all day!" 

"Shut up Nieto!" Alex yelled back. It was good to be back. 

_________________ 

Alex arrived home and dumped her bag on the floor with a soft thump. She went through her nightly routine of checking the answering machine for messages, but true to form, there was no flashing red light. She ran a hand through her tangled blonde hair and blinked a few times, trying to decide whether she wanted to hit the sack or watch some television. Or give Ty a call. 

It was too late to call Ty, she decided and besides, he probably wasn't even home yet. If she did call, she'd most likely end up talking to Carlos and she really didn't want to have to do that. Alex decided to give Ty a call in the morning. 

"Where the hell is the remote?" Alex muttered to herself, as she pulled through a pile of papers on the coffee table. "Why can't I ever just put it down somewhere where I'll find it again?" 

Alex searched for a few more minutes before finding it stuffed down behind the couch cushions along with a chocolate bar wrapper and something that might have been a peanut. She flopped down on the couch and flipped the tv on. "Good old American mindless entertainment." Alex said softly as she flipped through the channels. 

________________ 

"Why can't that guy just pick up his cans? And why did you buy him more in the first place?" Carlos griped at his roommate as he picked up several crushed beer cans. "All he ever does is lay around." 

"Could you be less sensitive?" Ty asked. 

"Oh what do you want me to do?" Carlos asked. "Boo hoo, his wife died! It's not like it just happened yesterday." 

"Clearly you've never lost anyone you care about." Ty stated and took the cans from Carlos. "He just needs time to work through it." 

"I doubt that laying around, being depressed on our couch is going to help! He should be back at work, actually doing something." 

Ty put the empty cans into the box that they'd come from and was about to say something to Carlos when the phone rang. He shot Carlos a glare and picked up the phone. "Hello?" 

Carlos raised his eyebrows and looked at Ty questioningly. "Is it for me?" he asked. "It might be this really hot girl that I met last night." 

"Go away." Ty mouthed and waved his hand. 

Carlos leaned in closer and tried to hear the conversation. From what he could pick out, it was a girl on the other end. "You got a girlfriend that you're not telling me about?" 

Ty covered the receiver with his hand. "Go away. Go take a shower. Go clean the shower. I don't care, just go away!" 

"Fine, you don't have to tell me twice." Carlos muttered and left Ty in the kitchen. 

"Sorry about that." Ty said into the phone. "Carlos is just being an ass." 

On the other end, Alex laughed. "Isn't he always? I still can't figure out how you put up with him." 

"A lot of patience and understanding." Ty replied. "So how did your first day back at work go?" 

"It went okay. We had an easy day though, the hardest call we had an old man who'd been bitten by a dog. He bled all over the bus, that clean up was a real bitch." 

"That's good to hear, well not that some old guy was bitten by a dog, but that your day was okay." 

"So, about coffee," Alex said. "You busy this morning?" 

"Uh no. No, if you want to get together before our shifts start, that would be great. Gives me a chance to get away from Carlos!" 

"Great! How about we meet at that place on Madison? You like their coffee, don't you?" 

Ty nodded his head even though Alex couldn't see him. "Best in the city. How does noon sound? Can you make it there for then?" 

"If I leave right now, I can." 

"Okay, well, I guess I'll see you then." 

"Yep, I guess you will. Bye!" Alex hung up with a soft beep. Ty stared at the phone he held in his hand and wondered what he was getting himself into. 

________________ 

"You goin' somewhere?" Sully asked sleepily from the couch. Ty threw on his jacket and glanced over at his friend. 

"Coffee with Alex." 

"Is Carlos here?" Sully sat up and scratched his face. His hand rustled over the stubble. 

"He's in his room. Don't worry about him. How long has it been since you've showered?" Ty looked at Sully, noticing the greasy hair and the unshaven face. 

"Not that long." Sully replied stubbornly. 

"You might want to consider taking one." Ty suggested. "I see you found the beer that I picked up last night." Sully looked over the side of his bed. "Carlos and I already picked the cans up. Do you have a session today?" 

Sully yawned. "At 2:00." 

"You going?" 

Sully swung his legs off the bed and rubbed his face with his hands again. "Maybe, maybe not. It's all a crock of shit anyway." 

"Look man, as your friend and partner, I'm telling you to go. I need you to get back out there, save me from this crappy job I've got now." 

"Thought you always wanted to be more than a patrol cop. 'Sides, you're not doing it cause of me, you're doing it because you insisted on putting your nose into his business." Sully said and stood up. He swayed slightly before putting a hand on the wall to steady himself. 

"He raped that woman!" Ty said angrily. "I couldn't just ignore that." 

"And now you're a chauffeur." Sully stated and walked into the kitchen. 

Ty shook his head with disgust and pulled up the zipper on his jacket. He heard Sully rustling around in the fridge and without saying another word, Ty grabbed his hat and left the apartment. 

_______________ 

Alex paced in front of the coffee house on Madison. She looked up hopefully at each tall passing stranger but none of them were Ty. "Come on Ty, where are you?" Alex muttered and stuffed her hands into her jacket pocket. 

"Alex!" 

Alex looked up and saw Ty waving to her from across the street. He glanced out at the road and ran across once the way was clear. "Sorry I'm late." he said glancing at his watch. "Got into a bit of an argument with Sully before I left and then I missed the bus and had to wait for the next one." 

Alex shrugged. "It's alright. I was starting to think you were going to stand me up though. Do you always have to wear that silly looking hat?" She tilted her chin towards the beanie cap that Ty had pulled over his head. 

"Not much hair in case you hadn't noticed Alex. I gotta keep my head warm somehow." 

"Yeah I know, but it just looks so...stupid." 

Ty sighed inwardly. "Did you come here to have coffee with me or insult me?" 

Alex took her hands out of her pocket. "Sorry, I'm just a bit testy today I guess. That tends to happen when my hot water shuts off in the middle of my shower and my coffee date is late." She pulled open the door and Ty followed her in. 

Ty breathed in deeply as the entered the small coffee house. "Love that smell." he said. Alex smiled and then approached the counter. There were a few other patrons, most of them were sitting in pairs at the small tables, talking quietly. 

Ty and Alex ordered their coffees and then stood waiting while their drinks were made up. "Does your leg hurt?" Ty asked suddenly. 

"Why?" 

"You're kinda standing funny, like you're favouring your right leg." 

"Oh, yeah. It does bother me sometimes." 

Their drinks were placed on the counter in front of them and they grabbed them and sat down at one of the tables. "So was there something you wanted to discuss?" Alex asked as she took a tentative sip of her coffee. 

"Nothing in particular. I guess I just wanted to see you again. I felt really bad about not seeing you in the hospital." 

"Like I said yesterday, it's okay. Don't worry about it. I had more than enough company with Kim coming by all the time. Some of the other guys from the house dropped by occasionally too." 

"Still, I should have come by." 

Alex shook her head and took another sip of her coffee. Ty dipped a stir straw into his cup and stirred the brown liquid. "When Sully's wife died, were you there?" Alex asked. 

"Not when she was shot, but I was at his place when it was burned. I found him sitting there in the rain, just staring." 

"He's such a nice guy too. I remember when he invited me to give out presents at the Y with him." Alex smiled at the memory. "He didn't deserve this." 

Ty shook his head. "No. No, he didn't, but he knew something like this was coming. Their marriage wasn't all hearts and flowers. He was having her followed by some detectives who were looking for Chevchenko." 

"You serious?" 

"Yeah, unfortunately. It was really tearin' him up inside to do that to her. He had decided to put an end to it when Tatiana was shot." 

"That's sad." Alex said and Ty nodded. "But other than Sully, how are you doing? Obviously you don't like your new job." 

"I'd say that don't like is a bit of an understatement. I have to spend eight hours riding around with a crusty old police chief who thinks he's doing me a favour." 

"Doing you a favour?" 

"Apparently a lot of other patrol officers would be just dyin' to get to where I am now." Ty said. "I'd rather be back out on the streets, arresting drunk, homeless men and dealing with wives chasing their husbands with baseball bats." 

"You miss the action." Alex said knowingly. 

"I take it you do too?" 

"I like being a paramedic." Alex said. "Besides, I requested to be assigned to work with Kim again. After the accident, I just..." 

"What?" Ty looked into Alex's blue eyes. They looked sad. 

"I almost died Ty." Alex said. "And I didn't want my mom to have to go through that, not after losing my dad. I considered quitting all together but Kim convinced me that I couldn't give it up entirely." 

"You're not going back to fire duty?" 

Alex shrugged. "I might or I might not." 

Ty blew on his coffee and watched the layer of foam on the top swirl around. "Look, I'm sorry to have laid all that on you." Alex said. "I guess it's just nice to have someone other than Kim to talk to for a change." 

"That's alright. I'm glad you told me. I don't think I can really help, but you know." 

"I don't expect you to help me Ty." 

Ty leaned back in his chair. A couple of women the next table over glanced in Ty's direction and one of them winked at him and then giggled. If Alex had noticed, she showed no sign of it. "We should do this again sometime." Ty suggested. 

"Coffee?" 

"Or lunch. Whatever." 

Alex nodded. "Yeah, I think I might like that." 

Ty smiled at her and picked up his cup of coffee that was rapidly growing colder and took a sip.   
  



	3. Chapter Three

Title: Working It Out: Chapter Three  
  
Author: Kate Anderson  
  
Email: sam_loves_jack@yahoo.ca  
  
Disclaimer: The characters used in this story aren't mine. They belong to Ed Bernero and bunch of other people that I don't know. Please don't sue - or else I will sic my rat on you! Go get 'em Maisy!  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Spoilers: Up through Season four's "Firestarter"  
  
Summary: Can Ty and Alex give it another shot?  
  
Author's Notes: Thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far! It means a lot to me.   
  
Again, not very comfortable with these characters. So, if they're acting out of character, it's not intentional simply accidental.   
  
  
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"Ma'am, could you please hold still?" Kim exhaled slowly through her nose and tried to remain patient with the woman. "We can't help you unless you keep still!" 

The woman struggled for a few more seconds and then finally calmed down. "You have to help me!" she cried out. "I can't get my hand out of this thing!" She held up her hand which was stuck in mayonnaise jar. 

Alex nodded and brushed back a tendril of hair from her face. "We know that ma'am, and we're going to help you." 

"Do you have any liquid dish detergent?" Kim asked the woman. "That will help us get your hand free." 

The woman nodded tearfully. "There's some in the cupboard under my sink. It's green though, is that okay?" 

"Green is fine." Alex replied and went into the kitchen. She opened the cupboard and pulled out a bottle of green dish detergent. Alex went back into the dining room and handed the bottle of Kim. 

"Okay ma'am, I'm going to pour this around your hand and then hopefully it will just pop right out. It might hurt a bit, but there shouldn't be any permanent damage. Alex, do you want hold her other hand?" 

Alex moved around to the woman's side and grasped her free hand. Kim looked to Alex and Alex nodded. "Okay, I'm ready. On three." Kim said and then counted to three. As she began tugging on the woman's hand, Alex felt her hand go numb as the woman squeezed it and began screaming. "Almost there." Kim said, gritting her teeth. 

After much pulling and cursing, the hand popped free from the jar. The jar rolled across the table and landed on the floor. "Let's take a look at that hand now." Alex said and trying to ignore the pain in her own hand, began to examine the woman's hand. 

______________ 

"I don't think that woman was all there." Alex commented as she folded the stretcher up and pushed into the back of the ambulance. 

"You got that impression too?" Kim laughed. "Her hand was fine, she didn't even need to go to the hospital and besides, who freaks out that much over getting their hand caught in a mayonnaise jar?" 

"At least she's not our problem any more. Nurse Proctor can deal with her now." 

Kim nodded. "You ready for supper? I was thinking we could head back to the house for a while. DK's cooking tonight." 

"Chilli?" Alex looked hopeful as she climbed into the bus. DK's chilli was something worth living for. 

"I hope so! By the way, I've been meaning to ask you, how did your little date with Ty go this morning?" 

Alex nodded her head slightly and put on her seatbelt. "Fine, I guess. He was late getting there, blamed it on a fight with Sully and then missing the bus. We talked about a few things, mostly about him not coming to see me in the hospital and about Tatiana." 

"You seeing him again?" 

"Probably for lunch or something." 

"So nothing happened?" 

Alex gave Kim a look of disbelief. "We talked Kim. We didn't rip off our clothes and make wild, passionate love on the table in the coffee house!" 

"Just asking." 

______________ 

"You didn't go to counselling today did you." Ty wasn't asking Sully a question. He already knew that Sully hadn't left the apartment. 

"I told you that I don't need to see a shrink." Sully grumbled. 

"I called your shrink today, she says that you haven't kept an appointment since your first meeting. You need to go Sully, they aren't going to let you back on the job without it." 

"Maybe I don't want to go back." 

"You aren't serious are you Sul?" Ty frowned and looked at the lump on the sofa. "What are you going to do then? You aren't going to sit around here for the rest of your life feeling sorry for yourself." 

"Do you want me to leave?" Sully asked. "Because I will. There are other places that I can go." 

Ty sat down on a chair and picked up a pillow. He put it on his lap and began picking at some loose stitching. "I didn't say that I wanted to you leave. I want you to see the bereavement counsellor. You need help Sully." 

Sully pressed a few buttons on the remote and the volume on the tv increased. "I don't need help. I need her to come back." 

"She's not coming back." 

"I know." Sully turned up the volume another notch. 

"Hey man, are you deaf now or something?? Turn down the tv!" Carlos called from the other room. "I'm tryin' to talk to my girl!" 

Sully rolled his eyes and turned the volume back down a few notches. "His girl, yeah right." 

Ty smiled. "Probably some chick that he just met today while at a call." 

"Speaking of girls, how did your date with Taylor go?" Sully seemed genuinely interested. 

"It went well. We talked and then decided that we'd meet up sometime for lunch or something." 

"You two getting back together then? I always liked her. She was good for you." Sully said almost paternally. 

Ty shrugged. "We have a lot to work through before that will ever happen I think." 

"Well then work through it." Sully suggested. "Work through it before you lose her forever." 

_______________ 

Alex sat in her darkened apartment staring at the phone. It was like the phone was speaking to her, telling her to pick it up and call Ty. "You're sad Taylor, you know that?" Alex muttered to herself and reached for the phone. 

She dialled Ty's familiar number and frowned when she heard the beeping that indicated the line was busy. "Probably Carlos on the phone with a girl." Alex said and hung up the phone. As she did that, she wondered who she was talking to. 

Alex grabbed the remote control, which was actually sitting on the coffee table where it belonged for a change, and turned on the tv. "Nothing...boring...stupid...hmmm, maybe..." Alex whispered as she flipped through the channels. 

_______________ 

Jimmy leaned over to Kim and poked her. "Hey Kimmy," he said, looking around. "The latest on the grapevine is that Taylor and Davis are getting back together. You know anything 'bout that?" 

Kim slid open the door to the fridge and took out a bottle of water. "Even if I did, I wouldn't say anything to you. Who did you hear that from?" 

Jimmy shrugged. "Just a friend of a friend. So it's true?" 

Kim took a sip of the water. "Maybe." she said finally. "They just had coffee. It's not like he proposed marriage." 

Jimmy grinned at her, his dimples making an engaging appearance. "So if there's hope for those two then maybe..." 

"Dream on Jimmy." Kim said and twisted the cap back on her bottle of water. 

"You know that Joey would love it." Jimmy said, smiling at Kim again. 

"What happened with him the other night anyway?" Kim asked. "My mom said something about a large bruise on his leg? I had to tell her that I had no idea what had happened." 

"It's nothing Kim, don't worry about it. He was playing soccer with some of his friends and he got kicked in the shin, that's all." 

"That's why you had to leave work early?" 

"The babysitter was freaking out!" Jimmy protested. "She just overreacted." 

The sound of soft footsteps came up the stairs. Alex appeared and took off her hat. "Hey Kim, hey Jimmy. You guys are here early." 

"I had to catch up on some of the run sheets from yesterday." Kim said and put her bottle of water down on the table. "Can I talk to you upstairs?" 

Alex nodded. "I'm going up there now." 

Kim followed Alex up the stairs and into the bunk room. Alex threw down her bag and opened her locker. Kim sat down on a bunk. "People are talking about you and Ty." 

"Already? We only had the coffee two days ago! Don't these people have lives of their own?" 

"Apparently not. Jimmy asked me if you two were back together." 

"Great, if Jimmy knows then everyone must know. I should talk to Yokas, see if she knows yet." Alex took off her shirt and pulled on her uniform blouse and began to button it up. "Then Yokas can tell Bosco, if he doesn't already know...Know what? Maybe I should just announce it over the radio!" 

Kim blinked a few times. "I think you're getting a little carried away now." she said. "It's just a rumour anyway, isn't it? I mean, you and Ty haven't decided anything yet, have you?" 

Alex sighed and shook her head. "Not yet. I tried to call him last night, but the line was busy and then this morning I had lunch with my mom." 

"How's she doing?" 

"Good. She's good." Alex replied, not wanting to say anything more. 

"Good afternoon ladies." Carlos said as he walked into the room. 

"Hey Carlos." Alex replied and slammed her locker shut. Kim just rolled her eyes at Alex and stood up. 

_________________ 

Ty brought the car to a halt and Hancock jumped out. "What's going on here!" Hancock yelled over to the firechief. 

The firechief waved a hand, motioning for Hancock to move closer. "The buildings totally engulfed! I've still got a few men inside with hoses but I'm going to be pulling them out soon! I need your officers directing traffic and keeping the civilians back!" 

Hancock nodded and went over to a group of police officers that included Bosco and Faith. "Everyone, I need you to get your asses in gear and keep these people back!" 

Ty went over to Hancock. "Where do you need me?" he asked, wanting to help out. 

"You stay with the car." Hancock said and then turned away. "You, the short cop and your lady partner, I want you two out on the street directing traffic!" 

Bosco shot Hancock a disgusted look but went off into the road with Faith. Ty stood by the car, looking out at the scene. An apartment building was burning, flames were licking out from the windows and Ty could feel the heat from where he was standing. He looked over at the various ambulances and then he saw Alex helping a young child wrapped in a blanket. 

A group of firefighters emerged from the building, covered in soot, carrying a hose. Ty couldn't recognize them with their masks on. "All units, out of the building! I repeat all units, we are pulling out!" the firechief yelled into his radio. 

"There's still people in there!" one of the firefighters called over. "I'm going back in!" 

"Like hell you are!" the chief yelled back. 

The firefighter, whom Ty still didn't recognize waved a hand and then went back through the smoke and into the building. The chief shook his head and yelled, "DK! Walsh! Doherty went back in! Go in there and pull him out!" 

DK and Walsh nodded and went into the building. "Of course it had to be Jimmy." Ty muttered under his breath. Not that anyone would have heard him even if he had said it out loud. 

"Can someone give me a hand over here?" Ty recognized the voice calling for help as Alex's. No one seemed to have heard her, so Ty left the car and went over to her. 

"Can I help?" Ty asked. 

"Ty?" Alex looked up from the patient she was attending to. "Uh, yeah. You'll do. Can you just hold onto him while I inject this?" Alex held up a syringe filled with clear liquid. "He may start seizing." 

Ty nodded and put his arms around the patient. Alex swabbed a small patch of skin with alcohol and then plunged the needle. Ty winced as it pierced the skin. Once the medication made its way into the man's bloodstream, he began jerking a bit and Ty held on. 

Alex tossed the used needle in a bio-hazard container. "Thanks." she said. 

"No problem." Ty replied. "Big fire huh?" 

Alex nodded. "Big fire. Plenty of vics to keep us busy." 

"Jimmy went back into the building to look for more." Ty said. 

Alex looked up at the flames leaping from a third floor window. "I should be in there with him." she said softly. 

"The chief sent DK and Walsh in after him." Ty looked at the doorway. "They haven't come out yet." 

"They will." Alex said, nodding her head. "Those three are surprisingly difficult to kill. Especially Jimmy." 

Alex wrapped a bandage around her patient's arm and tightened it with a yank. "This probably isn't the best time to be asking you this." Ty said, watching Alex bandage the man. "But I was wondering if you'd like to have lunch tomorrow?" 

Alex tied the bandage in a knot. "Lunch sounds good." she said and grunted as tried to move the man herself. Ty stepped forward and took the man's legs. "Thanks." Alex said, hefting the man onto a stretcher. 

"How does 11:30 sound? I thought we could go to that Thai place that you like." 

"Thai sounds great." Alex replied and Ty smiled. 

"There's DK, Jimmy and Walsh." Alex said, staring past Ty. "Safe and sound as usual." 

"That's good." Ty said and put a hand on Alex's shoulder. "Uh oh, I think Hancock's looking for me. I'd better go. I'll see you tomorrow then?" 

Alex nodded. "Tomorrow."   
  



End file.
